Thousands flock to Hoboken for spring Arts & Music Festival

HOBOKEN -- Thousands flocked to the streets of Hoboken yesterday for the spring Arts & Music Festival.

The festival featured hundreds of booths lining Washington Street, from Observer Highway to Sixth Street, offering everything from crafts to food, all under sunny skies.

Three music stages at Observer Highway, Third Street and Sixth Street also presented a variety of performers throughout the afternoon.

Jangle-pop pioneers, The dB’s, reuniting after a 25-year recording hiatus, closed out the festival with a spirited performance on the Observer Highway stage.

A children’s area featured rides and attractions on Third Street. A T-Rex dinosaur visited kids at the festival, offering a sneak peek at “Field Station: Dinosaurs,” the exhibition set to open in Secaucus later this month.

As always, the festival featured numerous local artists and musicians. Bergen County indie-dance band The Front Bottoms performed just before The dB’s.

Weehawken native Anna Yglesias-Liberatore, who teaches in Union City, had a booth at the festival for the 14th year in a row. Her display featured a full-sized completely hand-painted 1984 Saab.

“I’ve been coming to this festival since it started,” said Yglesias-Liberatore, who specializes in hand-painted “recycled” art.

Ralph Tullo, of Bayonne, hawked hand-painted faux-antique signs.

“I’ve been a commercial sign painter for 35 years,” Tullo said.

Alabama transplant Kenny Kudulis, meanwhile, was a relative newcomer to the festival scene. His artwork features a unique mixture of painted “critters” and original photography mounted on wooden panels.